NASCAR's new Chase format: A closer look at the changes

Al Pearce

LAT PHOTOGRAPHIC

Matt Kenseth hopes to be in NASCAR's Final Four when the series has its finale at Homestead, Fla., in November.

If the devil is indeed in the details, there's plenty to bedevil Sprint Cup fans as they try to absorb all the twists and turns and switchbacks of NASCAR's new Chase for the Championship playoff system. For example, take these 10 details:

Detail: Only drivers attempting to run all 26 regular season races and are top 30 in points after Richmond on Sept. 6 can advance to the 10-race playoff. Winners are virtually assured of making the Chase, but if more than 16 drivers have won after Richmond, the lowest-ranked winners don't make the cut.

Why: NASCAR doesn't want a one-off ringer coming in and stealing a victory -- at Sonoma or Watkins Glen, for example -- then sitting out until the Chase begins at Joliet on Sept. 14. In that scenario, a one-race winner with a handful of starts would keep out a winless full-schedule driver. “You couldn't come in and just participate in a road course win and be eligible,” said Steve O'Donnell, director of racing operations.

Detail: Of course, there's an exception. Except in rare instances (yes, that caveat still exists), a full-schedule winner who misses an unspecified number of races due to illness or injury may still qualify for the Chase.

Why: Remember the fall of 2012, when Dale Earnhardt Jr. missed two races because of concussion-like symptoms? If a driver wins early-season races and is later sidelined for a few weeks, he'd remain Chase eligible regardless of his points position after the 26th regular-season race.

Detail: A Chase driver who wins during any of the three-race elimination rounds is assured of advancing to the next round.

Why: It's all about winning. Winners (for the most part) are guaranteed a Chase spot and winners within the Chase are guaranteed to advance to the next round. But that guarantee is for only the next round. Each three-race round is a standalone series and winning drivers advance only one round at a time.

Detail: Drivers eliminated in the first three rounds move into a “fifth-to-16th” pool and compete among themselves for final 12 points positions.

Why: Only the top 10 in final points are invited on stage to speak at the awards banquet in Las Vegas. Team owners consider that an ideal moment for their driver to thank sponsors and praise team associates. Drivers don't always embrace the moment, but they know it must be done and should be done well.

Detail: None of the Fast Final Four has to be running well or running at all after 400 miles at Homestead. In fact, all four contenders can be in the garage or dozens of laps behind, or on the back of a wrecker. Winning the final race would make things easier to understand, but it's far from a necessity.

Why: NASCAR cares only about the finish position of the last four championship contenders relative to each other at Homestead. The driver who beats the other three is the champion, regardless of their overall finish positions or where they are when the race ends.

Detail: NASCAR will closely monitor -- closer than usual, we expect -- to ensure that drivers already assured of a Chase spot don't suspiciously lets a teammate get a gift victory that earns him a Chase spot.

Why: Officials still have nightmares over Michael Waltrip Racing's finishing-fixing shenanigans last fall at Richmond. That controversy unearthed long-held conspiracy theories that teams have been subtly doing such things for years. “Those types of scenarios can happen today,” said Robin Pemberton, NASCAR vice-president of competition. “We know there are different strategies… and that is part of the excitement of the new format.”

Detail: NASCAR will not award lap-leader bonus points at the season-ending, championship-deciding race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Why: With bonus points available, a driver who finishes, say, 13th and leads a lap or the most laps will earn more points than the driver who leads no laps and finishes 12th. And without bonus points, there can't be a tie since points are awarded on a sliding scale, 43 down to 1. Said chairman and CEO Brian France: “Simplicity really matters at the final race.” Indeed... he who finishes first among the Fast Final Four gets the big trophy.

Detail: The 16 Chase drivers will have their points re-set to 2,000 after the final regular-season race. Each will get three extra points for each race they've won in the first 26.

Why: The goal of the first Chase 10 years ago was tighten the field for the last 10 races in hopes of preventing a runaway champion. But winning was important then, too, thus the bonus points for regular-season victories. From the “keep it close” perspective, the new Chase format doesn't change anything.

Detail: Chase drivers' points will be re-set at 3,000 after the first three-race round, to 4,000 after the second three-race round and to 5,000 for the final race at Homestead. But the 5,000 at Homestead are basically meaningless since the first Chase driver across the line is the champion, with the other three falling line among themselves. In the final accounting, though, those four will have 5,000 plus whatever points their finish position earns.

Why: NASCAR doesn't want a non-Chase driver to have more points than a Chase driver at any point during the Chase. Last year, for example, the highest-rated non-Chaser was Jamie McMurray with 721 points after Richmond. Matt Kenseth began the Chase as the leader with 2,015 points. Brad Keselowski's 1,041 points led the non-Chasers at the finish and Jimmie Johnson's 2,419 led the Chase field.

Detail: NASCAR reserves the right to “maybe” not award a driver a victory in case of post-race technical issues. Points may be docked and that victory may not count toward advancing to the next round.

Why: Nothing new here. It's been forever since a Sprint Cup driver lost a victory to a tech issue. Big money is taken and points forfeited, but the victory is allowed to stand. The biggest problem here would be a loss of points and the disallowing of an “advance” victory that could end a driver's Chase at any moment.